PUTTING ON THE DOG

When it comes to hotels, traveling always has been difficult for my family. While others were trying to sneak out with towels and ashtrays, we were busy sneaking things in.

My father was-is-devoted to the canine members of our clan. So over the years we became expert at hustling our 100-pound Rottweiler, Hilda, past front desks.

If only hotels had gone to the dogs sooner.

The nicest hotels-the sort with marble columns, linen sheets, antiques and flowers-were off limits to Hilda and my childhood cat, Piewacket. The only exceptions were for celebrities such as Joan Rivers' corgi, Spike, and Michael Jackson's chimp, Bubbles.

But now reasonable hotels such as pet-friendly Holiday Inns have been joined by ritzy $200- and $400-a-night places in welcoming ordinary dogs and cats, and an occasional parrot, penguin or tiger. Most members of the American Hotel & Motel Association, which represent half of the guest rooms in the nation, now accept pets.

"There's a lot of competition now in the luxury hotel business," said Glenn Goldstein, spokesman for Four Seasons hotels. "Whoever provides the best service gets the most business. And if that means pampering people's pets, so be it."

Four Seasons hotels treat pets like guests. At the Four Seasons Washington, D.C., the general manager writes a personal welcome note to each arriving animal. Room service then sends up a silver tray graced with flowers and dog or cat toys, Evian water, a porcelain bowl and the appropriate gourmet pet treats to put in it.

Recently a canine guest spent his birthday at the hotel, and management sent up a ground sirloin "cake" with a candle.

Shampoo and trim, please

The Ritz-Carlton in Chicago has developed its own "Haute Canine" line of doggie snacks that it includes in its pet welcome baskets. The hotel also offers a grooming salon on the premises.

The Boston Harbor Hotel, like many luxury hotels, offers a complimentary dog walking service. But it goes one step further, entering the names of visiting animals into its computer and expecting all staff to address pets by name. Not to be outdone, the Copley Plaza in Boston will add an on-call veterinarian to its staff this year.

The Pierre Hotel in New York City offers all the above services and even will pack a lunch for a pet going on an outing.

And it doesn't stop at dogs and cats.

New York's Le Parker Meridien recently opened its gym after hours so a visiting Florida black panther could work out on the treadmill without terrifying the human guests.

The Copley Plaza in Boston hosted two mongooses in the fall of 1992; they brought their own store of live snakes to eat. In Cambridge, Mass., two Sea World penguins staying in the Charles Hotel were welcomed by a bathtub filled with ice water for their play.

"Starting with the Persian Gulf war and then the recession, the hospitality industry has taken hits in the last couple years," said Kathryn Cochran, spokeswoman for the American Hotel & Motel Association. "Hotels are doing everything they can to increase occupancy."

What to pack

Most luxury hotels take the stance that they will do anything to accommodate their guests, whether it's finding a special screwdriver to fix broken eyeglasses or preparing a room for visiting tiger cubs. But before packing the rhinestone collar to go on vacation with your adored animals, do just a little planning.

- Bring along the animal's own bedding. This will keep your pet comfortable and reduce wear and tear on hotel linens.

- Visit the vet for a checkup before leaving home, and bring your pet's medical and immunization records.

- Bring along a jug of the animal's usual water for the first day. Many pets, especially dogs, are very sensitive to changes in their drinking water. Unless your pet is very travelwise, also bring along its own food.

- Even if a hotel is known for accepting pets, call ahead. A guest who failed to do this once showed up at the Essex House in New York City, with his ostrich padding along behind him. Completely taken aback, managment had to tell the man that while they once provided a home to an opera diva's jaguar, they had no accommodations for an 8-foot, 350-pound bird.

- Well-trained pets are always more welcome. The Marriott in downtown Chicago had to take action when a parrot persistently yelled obscenities when its owners were out of the room.

- During a stay, make sure that the front desk knows when animals will be alone in the room. Recently, management at the Pierre Hotel in Manhattan got a complaint about loud music booming from a room registered to a visiting rock star. Two security staff members were dispatched to investigate. They knocked and knocked. No answer. Cautiously, they opened the door and were flabbergasted to see an enormous Bordeaux mastiff watching a Bon Jovi video at top volume. Apologizing, one security guard tiptoed into the room and turned down the TV.

"I'm sure he thought he might be killed at any moment," said Mary Jo McNally, director of public relations for the hotel.

At the O'Hare Marriott, two housekeepers recently had to contend with an unattended, ferocious dog. One maid mounted a diversion by throwing a bowl of dog biscuits to one side of the room, while the second maid cleaned the other side of the room.

Despite the challenges, most hotels say their pet policies have paid off.

"We've had an increase in business because of this policy," said James Daley, owner and general manager of Boston's Copley Plaza. "It definitely makes our hotel more attractive to European guests, who take their pets everywhere."

Other hotel managers point out that many animals are more well behaved than people.

"Dogs are welcome in this hotel," says a sign on the front desk of all Tamar properties in Massachusetts. "We never had a dog that smoked in bed and set fire to the blankets. We never had a dog that stole our towels and played the TV too loud, or had a noisy fight with a traveling companion. We never had a dog that got drunk and broke up the furniture. ... So if your dog can vouch for you, you're welcome too."